Man Pleads Guilty To Killing Stepdad

LAKE COUNTY — A 21-year-old Waukegan man faces up to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to the shotgun slaying of his stepfather.

Lamont McKenzie, of the 500 block of South Utica Street, admitted Monday that he killed Orlando Kilpatrick, 41, in his Waukegan home on May 29.

Assistant State's Atty. Mike Mermel said his office would not seek a sentence of more than 40 years in exchange for the guilty plea.

McKenzie, who was charged with first-degree murder, will get at least 20 years when he's sentenced Jan. 13 by Circuit Judge Barbara Gilleran Johnson.

According to authorities, McKenzie walked into Kilpatrick's home in the 600 block of Jackson Street and shot him in the chest at close range. He reportedly told police he shot his stepfather to avenge beatings Kilpatrick allegedly gave McKenzie's mother.

Kilpatrick was taken to Provena St. Therese Medical Center in Waukegan, where he died three hours after the shooting. McKenzie was arrested the next day in North Chicago.